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A 24-year-old man allegedly stole a small plane from an airport in Hungary while intoxicated before prompting a dramatic military response — a “very dangerous” and “rare” occurrence, according to an aviation expert.
The man took a Cessna 172 from Kalocsa Airport on Saturday morning after pulling the ropes that secured the plane from the ground, according to a translated video posted on Facebook by Hungarian police.
The man then took off using a service road and headed toward Paks, home to Hungary’s only nuclear power plant, according to a Facebook post from Romulusz Ruszin-Szendi, Ph.D., Hungary’s defense minister.
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Hungarian military radars detected the aircraft, prompting a pair of standby fighter jets to take off, Ruszin-Szendi said.
The Cessna later came down in a sunflower field near Gerjen — where the fighter jets located the damaged aircraft and remained overhead until rescue crews arrived, the post said.
A 24-year-old man allegedly stole the small plane that’s pictured here from an airport in Hungary while he was intoxicated. (Hungarian National Police)
The pilot suffered minor injuries during the landing and made his way through the field to a nearby road, according to the translated video.
A passing driver stopped after the man asked for help — but the 24-year-old then allegedly attempted to take the vehicle, according to a translated press release from Hungarian police.
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The driver prevented him from leaving with the car — and responding officers, within minutes, apprehended the suspect nearby, police said.
Authorities said the man appeared to be intoxicated at the time of the incident.
Officials arrived at the scene, pictured above, after the man made an emergency landing in a sunflower field. (Hungarian National Police)
“According to our current information, the man was drunk, and the police are investigating whether he was under the influence of other drugs,” Hungarian police said in the translated release.
Digital reached out to the Hungarian police for further comment and details.
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Authorities are investigating the circumstances surrounding the plane theft with aviation officials and other experts. The suspect was taken into custody and faces charges related to the incident, police said.
“The effects of alcohol can be extreme.”
“For someone operating an aircraft without any experience whatsoever, or limited experience, it could be very dangerous,” said Steven Arroyo, an aviation expert and retired airline captain based in Florida (he is not involved in the investigation of the case in Hungary).
“Stealing [an] aircraft and going out on joyrides is extremely rare,” he added. “It’s really not a major event that occurs on a regular basis — but it’s a serious event [when it] occurs. There are strict regulations in terms of consuming alcohol if you are behind the controls of an aircraft. Those rules are worldwide.”
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There can be a “severe impairment of judgment, especially when you gain altitude because the air is thinner, so the bloodstream is getting reduced oxygen. … The effects of alcohol can be extreme,” he added.
Digital previously reported on another Cessna theft involving a small plane at Van Nuys Airport in Los Angeles in December 2025.
The fighter jets spotted the damaged aircraft, pictured, and circled above the area until rescue crews arrived. (Hungarian National Police)
A 37-year-old man allegedly gained access to the airport and a Cessna C172 before the aircraft struck a hangar, according to Los Angeles Airport Police and the Federal Aviation Administration.
The plane was never airborne and hit the building while taxiing, according to reports.
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The suspect was taken into custody on suspicion of burglary and aircraft theft.
Bonny Chu of Digital contributed reporting.
